


UnderMaze

by jasmynation



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Errortale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Inktale (Undertale), Alternate Universe - Labyrinth (Undertale), Alternate Universe - UnderMaze (Undertale), As much as it was inspired by ErrorInk daydream XD, For now I will change it to have gen and m/m and add hint of errorink? as a tag, Gen, M/M, UnderMaze is not a ship focused story though, and no idea yet if i will go through with the ideas that go more errorink, arhgdgfdkgglr, but it's not the actual focus of undermaze, i keep teetering on whether or not this will have errorink in it, just like a subplot kind of, like it hints at it a lot, or just leaving it at a hint of possible errorink for this specific error and ink, people gotta be warned, thats for sure
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-13
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 16:48:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 10,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23640322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jasmynation/pseuds/jasmynation
Summary: The Labyrinth is a mysterious place, where not even its keeper knows all its secrets.Those who are taken in by the Labyrinth can not escape until they’ve learned to cooperate or compromise about whatever conflict troubles their relationship.[As the story goes on ships may happen, but that is not the focus of UnderMaze even if it may sometimes come across as it-it’s like a side quest.]
Relationships: Hint of ErrorInk?
Comments: 43
Kudos: 27





	1. Ink and Error Enter the Labyrinth

**Author's Note:**

> A big thank you to Maxils for beta reading and editing the chapters <3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Error is a grumpy pants. Ink has no attention span. Meet Labby, he doesn’t like when someone calls the Labyrinth a Maze. He would hate that this is called UnderMaze. Not up to him though.

Ink felt the stiff cold floor beneath him as he slowly awoke. The last he knew he was sleeping at his place, so for a moment, he thought he'd just fallen on the floor until his eyes opened to a dark blue flooring.

He pushed himself up, noting his odd surroundings and the presence of another passed out two feet away from him.

 _Weird_ , he thought, scooting himself closer to his usual opponent in battle. _He's so calm._ The glitch was rolled up on the floor in his coat, seemingly unfazed by the hard sleeping surface.

Ink poked his shoulder, figuring that would be enough to startle the other awake.

"Inky..." Error mumbled, stirring softly in his sleep until the glitches on his body decided to react to the other’s touch to tell him the other’s presence was very real.

He shot up, glaring over at the other as he registered that he'd just said that stupid nickname out loud and Ink's face told him he would never live it down.

"SHUT UP, STUPID SQUID!"

"I didn't say anything!" Ink laughed, his face full of colour.

"Why are you in my void? Why the fuck aren't my powers working?!"

"Why are you calling me Inky in your sleep~?" Ink asked curiously, only to get ignored.

If it wasn't clear, Error was pissed.

The second he realized that he was awake and Ink was near him, Error tried to use his strings to tie the other up and pull the rainbow bastard away from him. Of course that wasn't working and he didn't understand it. Ink shouldn't be able to get into **HIS** void and prevent him from using **HIS** magic.

Then Error noticed they were surrounded by shades of blue, not nothingness like his void. He let himself calm down just enough that he could take in his surroundings better.

"Wait, where are we?"

"No idea!" Unlike Error, Ink was excited about the new and weird situation they'd been thrown into. He wanted to explore, but he didn't want to just run off without Error in case the other had any idea of where they were or tried to destroy the place.

"And... WHY CAN'T I USE MY STRINGS?!" It was increasingly concerning, and frustrating, that his powers were not working. Whoever did this, he was mentally preparing for a fist fight if he had to.

The panic from Error made Ink realize his own dilemma.

"Oh no, my vials! And MY BROOMY?!" He was suddenly not enjoying this adventure so much. While the lack of his best companion was a concern, his vials were very much more pressing in the long run. Despite that, he felt much more upset about Broomy being missing or taken. Error seemed just as lost and as upset which meant he had no idea how to get his Broomy or vials back.

"So, if neither of us know what's going on..." Error stood up, fists and teeth clenched. "Someone is asking for a **B A D T I M E**."

"BROOMY'S GONE ERROR!!" Ink cried to his frustrated companion.

"Why," he facepalmed, "are you obsessed with that?" Not only was he stuck in this bizarre situation without his powers, he had to deal with Ink, who wasn't someone he could just punch. At least, not yet. Maybe if they're stuck like this for too long he won't be able to help but punch the idiot in front of him.

They stood at the end of a long empty hallway, the walls a dull grey-blue that seemed to go on forever. Despite no lights in sight, the area around them seemed well lit. It was only in the far distance that it seemed to grow dark.

Error barely took a step, ignoring Ink, before out of nowhere bright blue streams came from the ceiling, no cause in sight, and quickly formed a being that took on the shape of what Error could only assume was another AU's Sans. This was another stupid alternate universe that was practically asking for him to destroy it, dragging him in like this.

"Welcome to the Labyrinth!" The new ‘Sans’ spoke.

Ink took in the other’s details as a sort of distraction from his panic; aka ' _something new and shiny, lemme see!_ ' syndrome.

This ‘Sans’ wore a dark grey fedora, with some kind of light purple fluff on it. His jacket was dark purple, long and curved back at the end. Its collar popped up around the top of his light green turtleneck sweater. His pants were a light brown, matching the slightly darker brown of his knee high boots - boots that also had rims of the same dark purple as his jacket and a piece of the same purple fluff on his hat.

Besides the 'fanciness' Ink deemed him to have, his eyes seemed to be spinning spirals. He took his pen out to write down this feature, as he knew his own eyes had occasionally featured the spiral symbol and found that an interesting connection.

While Ink did that, Error rushed at him to punch him in the ribs before the new skeleton had a chance to say anything else. However, his hand went right through the other.

"Why can't I punch you?!"

"In your frustration, it appears you haven't noticed I am a hologram." As sweet as the hologram put it, Error could hear the condescension in his voice.

He held in his need to argue with the new face, stepped back, and focused on the situation at hand.

"What the hell is going on here?!"

"I'm here to explain that!" The hologram stated in that all too cheerful voice.

"Is this a new AU?" Ink jumped between the two and began rambling. "You look fancy! Why the hat? How does your jacket work? Do you have a brother?"

"Wow, you have a lot of energy!" The hologram laughed softly. In Error's mind, it sounded like a nicer way to say Ink was being obnoxious. "I don't know what an 'AU' is, but this place is not new." Ink stood back and titled his head, listening and noting how the others eyes changed to regular eye lights. "The Labyrinth has been around for as long as... well, the universe! Probably... It brings beings of all kinds here to sort out conflict."

"So that's why you took Broomy?" The tool was considered a weapon, after all, and not usually something that's good for sorting out conflicts, at least not in a clean way.

The conversation, or rather, the 'lecture' as Error felt it was, was riding on his nerves.

"Not me, the Labyrinth. No magic or weapons is one of its rules. It takes that stuff from beings it brings here."

"Well this stupid maze better let me go before I destroy you and it!" Error declared, only gaining him a sly smirk from the hologram, whose eye lights returned to swirls. That was pissing him off.

"There is only one way out of here, but good luck with that. Also, it's not a maze." The hologram's posture changed, and his eye lights returned to normal circles when he continued. "Enough boring details! Pleasure to meet you two. Call me Labby, I'm the keeper of this place. Which is not a maze, it's a Labyrinth."

"I'll call this abomination whatever I want to." Error grumbled.

"I'm Ink, and that's Error!" Ink returned the introduction. "Nice to meet you too! Can I have my vials back?" The keeper seemed nice enough to understand, so Ink decided to ask.

"Sorry, your vials are magic and therefore in the Labyrinth's possession. Not my call." Labby shrugged.

"They're just so I can feel..."

"Your feelings are vials? How odd."

"Screw this!" Error threw his hands in the air in frustration and stormed off down the hallway. "I'm out of here."

Ink and Labby watched his fit in silence for a moment.


	2. Running in Circles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Error declares this place as his hell. How long have they been wandering? They are losing their minds.

"Error, wait!" Ink called after his glitchy frenemy. He was used to the other running off on him, but one thing he knew right now was that he had to stick with Error. It didn't even matter if he wanted to.

"Well, this will be long..." Labby adjusted his hat slightly with a soft sigh. "You better go after him."

"But I have-" The hologram vanished before Ink could finish his statement. "Questions..."

Ink sulked for a moment, upset that he didn't get more answers from the new companion who seemed just as eager to answer as he was to leave. His eye lights changed to two different coloured exclamation points, jumping in place at his realization that he was alone.

"EERRROOORRR!!!" He cried out, running down to the never-ending hallway. "WAIT UP! PLEASE!"

Labby had returned to his own abode, though he technically never left, placing his hat carefully on a round wooden table. "Time for a drink."

He poured milk into a kettle on the stove and awaited it to boil. He stretched up his arms, joints cracking, and sat himself down at his table. He seemed to live in an enclosed place, no door or window in sit. The kitchen was small, an archway between it and the living room area that he sat in by his table. There was a cozy little fireplace by a soft blue armchair where a book sat, and the rest of the room seemed to be surrounded by bookshelves to the point where you could barely tell there was a wall behind them. The only other thing in the room was another couch in the middle that faced the fireplace, just big enough for the skeleton to sleep on. It was everything he needed, apart from the device on the fireplace shelving that let him transmit a hologram of himself to visitors and see a projection of them on the grey-blue empty wall space above the fireplace.

Not that he knew this, but it resembled the living room and kitchen area at Toriel's home in the ruins.

He crossed his arms, resting them on his table and resting his head on them, closing his eyes while he awaited the kettle's whistling.

Error rushed around through the labyrinth, kicking and hitting the walls, only hurting himself in the process. He huffed, pressing his back against a wall and sliding down to sit on the ground, tired from his tantrum. He crossed his legs, leaned his elbow on his knee and rested his head in his hand. This place was already giving him a headache.

Ink was much more concerned about his own wellbeing rather than being angry about the situation. There was only so much time he had. It was too hard to tell how much time had passed in here. There was no way of knowing when he would start running low.

He needed to find Error. _Surely, the maze wouldn’t separate us on purpose_ , Ink thought, _so if it’s magical then it’ll lead us back to each other, right? Why would it want us to be alone?_

Just as his fear was starting to eat at him, he turned a corner and saw Error down the hall, sitting on the ground. His wish had been answered.

“Error~!” Ink cheered and hurried over to the other's side as his nerves settled down. Error simply groaned in response. “Come on, we’ve got to work together to get-“

“BULLSHIT! Like that’ll ever happen!” Error’s glitches spread in his frustration. He was certainly in no mood to have to deal with Ink, alone with him, in this stupid maze.

“Yeah, figured you’d say something like that.” Ink sighed, a weak smile remaining on his face. “How’s that plan of yours going by the way?” He tilted his head slightly, letting a smirk slip into his expression.

Error slumped over, crossing his arms and grumbling. ”I hate you.” Was all he spoke clearly in his grumbling.

“Soooooo~?” Ink leaned down, holding his arms behind his back, brow raised and smirking down at his growling companion.

Error pushed back against the wall to avoid being any closer to the one teasing him. _I do not need this bullshit right now, stupid fucking Ink._ He reluctantly moved himself more to the left before standing up with a groan, continuing his walk through the corridor without a word to his annoying companion.

Ink hummed, pleased with the turn of events, as he and Error continued wandering around the Labyrinth. The glitchy skeleton had his hands shoved in his pockets, trying to keep his distance from the other by walking a bit ahead.

“Don’t think too much about this.” Error warned, but it fell on deaf ears-not that either really had ears to begin with, though.

“What do you think this place is?”

“Annoying.” Error then smirked, glancing over at Ink. “Almost as annoying as you.”

“I’m talking about how it can take our powers away.” Ink was all too used to ignoring the other’s insults. “Have you seen anything like that before?”

“You’re the abomination expert.”

“I’m not sensing any resets... and there doesn’t seem to be anyone but that one Sans... it’s odd.”

“It just looks like a crappy maze version of the ruins, but blue instead of that awful purple colour.”

The two continued wandering for what felt like hours, reaching dead end after dead end. Error would have guessed they'd been stuck in this place at least a whole day and he was exhausted. He was sure he'd snap soon if this went on any longer, and there wasn't even a sign of Labby the whole time.

"You've got to be kidding me?" Error yelled, having turned another corner only to find yet another dead end.

"You think this place is like a judgment hall?"

"It's hell. MY HELL!" He held his head in his hands and groaned. "You've asked that already." The tired glitch banged his head against the wall, leaving himself there to lean against it. "Just end my suffering already. What does it want?"

Ink raised his hand, about to place it on the other’s back for comfort, but he stopped himself with a sigh and bowed his head. He was tired too, and no amount of curiosity or pacifism could stop him from being annoyed and concerned about their situation. If they didn't find something that was different soon, he was sure Error might lose his mind.

As if on cue, when Ink raised his head, there was a door on the wall that was once a dead end. "Hey, was that door there before?"

Error swung his head to glare at the wall, relief washing over him. "Finally!" He rushed over to the door, Ink following, but when he opened the door to the other side and looked around, he was met with a horrible sight. "Fuck! It's just more maze?!" The door shut behind them once they were both through and disappeared into the wall.

"You think it's actually mad you call it a maze?" Ink slouched glancing up at the ceiling, continuing to wonder about how the Labyrinth functions.

"Places don't feel-" Error felt a surge of what he could only guess was electricity pass through him, burning him much like how he'd feel right before a reboot crashes him.

"Error!" Ink backed away, worried for his glitchy companion, but certainly in no rush to be shocked by whatever was zapping Error. The reboot didn't come. Error fell to the ground, out of breath and dizzy, but feeling oddly recharged. "Are you..."

"What the... " Error mumbled as he slowly pushed himself back on his feet.

"Your glitches!" Said trait of Ink's companion seemed to have vanished entirely from his body, as the shock cured his curse.

"So," The taller skeleton rubbed his head, adjusting to the new feeling and change in his own body, "it zapped my glitches away. Why?" Ink just shrugged, bringing his hands to cover his mouth. Something about this made him smile, he was sure Error would not be as amused. "Well, I'm not thanking it."

With a short new boost of energy, Error reluctantly continued through this new path, but as they wandered down the long corridor he felt odd about the path they took. They never reached any corners, but he felt like...

"We're going in a circle." He rubbed his forehead again, interrupting the incessant rambling of the one he occasionally called Squid. With a deep sigh, Error plopped himself down on the ground where he stood. "I give up. We're never getting out of here. Screw it." He laid himself on the ground, closing his eyes, ready to just pass out. "This shit hole is endless." It wasn't exactly like he was just accepting being stuck in here, but he was done for now, he could be enraged again when he woke up, recharged again and ready to argue with more walls and holograms.

"What?" Ink took Error much more seriously than he should have, but he was panicking himself. "You can't give up!"

 _This was Error, The Destroyer of AU's!_ _His stubbornness was the only one that could match my own persistence, yet here he was, giving up? That couldn't be true. Even if it was only for now, and he was just tired, we don't have time to stop, do we? How much time have we already lost?_

He needed Error to keep going. They needed to get out of here as soon as possible, or at least...

"Y-you have AU's to destroy!" He kneeled down next to the other and attempted to encourage him.

"What the hell is up with you?"

He needed to get his vials back.


	3. Undying Curiosity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So many questions, so little time. Who else is really in the Labyrinth? What ride are Ink and Error in for? Why is the Labyrinth trying to kill a weird Fish-Roach bug? This week; on UnderMaze.

Error laid out on the floor, one arm resting on his forehead as he listened to the idiot beside him attempt to 'motivate' him.

"I... don't have much time..." Which was debatable being that neither skeletons had any idea how much time had actually passed, only that it had felt like at least a day. "If you give up, we'll just be stuck here."

Ink was an idiot, but he made a point come across the destroyer's mind.

"And if you go empty, I have to drag your ass around if I go anywhere." He groaned, sitting up and glaring over at the other for a moment before something else caught his eye. Error had to do a double-take, he couldn't believe he just saw a fish with six roach legs crawling across the floor a few feet from them. "What the heck is that?"

Both outcode skeletons watched cautiously as what could only be called a fish-roach skittered along the floor. A similar light to the one that meant Labby's hologram was forming, seemed to create a mechanical arm holding a pot-shaped hammer just above the bug in time to slam down on it with enough force that should have squashed it. Instead, when the mechanical arm raised its weapon to reveal the flattened bug, it popped itself back in shape and skittered even faster away. Error had to admit he would rather watch the creature die than know it was about, but Ink was the first to speak.

"Did the labyrinth just...?" The artist couldn't even finish himself. It was hard to imagine a place that seemed so neutral and against fighting would be so persistent about pest control. Maybe that's why there weren't any more of those things around.

"Hey!" A familiar voice chimed in, choppy but clear enough. Ink and Error's attention shifted to watching as the labyrinth's mechanical bug splatter vanished and its keeper appeared. His jacket unbuttoned and without his hat, it was a bit odd to see him suddenly in such distress, but Error didn't mind the change. "Stop trying to hurt Undying! Bad Labyrinth."

"Undyne?" Ink's eyelights formed an upside-down question mark and an hourglass as his mind wondered about the possibilities. Error looked back around them to see if he could find the fish-roach or any of its potential friends around them, relieved and also not relieved that he couldn't see even the one they just witnessed in their proximity anymore.

"Uh," Labby flinched a bit, apparently unaware that his guests had witnessed the event that just took place. "no, 'Undying'." He made sure to pronounce himself more clearly this time, but he remained tense as he scanned the two across from him.

"So a 'not Undyne'..." Ink mumbled to himself.

"Where the hell have you been, Mr. Tour Guide?!" Unlike his airhead of a companion, Error stayed focused on the one ahead of them, pushing himself up so he could stand tall across from the Keeper. It was only slightly obnoxious that at least as a hologram, the new abomination was taller than him. And seemingly unphased by his presence. "You can't just leave people in a maze forever!" What else was he supposed to say? He lacked energy. He just wanted out of the damn place and away from the squid.

"Oh geez, did I leave you alone?" Labby brought a hand to his face and glanced to the side. "I was sure you ran off from me in frustration? Thought you wanted nothing to do with me, maybe? Something like that." His eyelights began to swirl, he placed one hand to grab the elbow of his raised arm to rest said arm in his hand, smirking and leaning slightly back as he looked back at the fuming destroyer of AU's across from him. "Or did I become useful when you realized your plan wasn't going to work?"

"You've made your point." Error spoke through his teeth, his exhaustion being the main thing holding him down from another yelling fit at Labby.

"Look, umm..." The Keeper scratched the back of his head. "Wait here a second, I'll be right back." And he was gone again.

"Hey!" Error huffed and groaned.

"So, Undyne is a bug here? This place just gets weird and weirder." If he had anything, he'd take notes down on his scarf, it was all new and fascinating. Ink could only hope he wouldn't forget it all by the time he could write things down. He had a pen earlier, but Error had snapped the poor thing in half and tossed it away.

"Uh..." Error turned his focus back on his enemy-frenemy? Whatever he was to him. "Don't you have more pressing concerns?" He had to keep Ink focused, not like he wanted to admit that they had work together for this stupid situation, or else he might as well get comfortable living in a maze with a mindless zombie. The maze itself wasn't too bad, honestly, it was clean and nothing around. Error just couldn't stand the idea that he was trapped by someone without his powers.

"Hm, not much we can do about that." Ink scratched at his head with a sigh. It was clear that just walking around the Labyrinth wasn't quite enough. Labby must have more answers, they need to know more about what this place is, to get out of course; totally not just out of curiosity. He could feel Error’s glare digging into him, though. "Are you..." The taller skeleton was looking at Ink with suspicion and concern opposed to the usual annoyance. "worried about me~?" He leaned closer to Error, a question mark and eyeglass in his eyelights, though for a moment after one of his blinks, a soul showed where the hourglass should have been.

"Shut up." The black-boned skeleton was not having this conversation. He looked and leaned away, avoiding seeing that rainbow face or thinking about why the squid would pretend to care about anything he said.

"I'm back!" Labby's hologram quickly reappeared in front of the two guests, his hat back on his head and jacket done up properly.

"Did you really leave just to get your stupid hat?" Error groaned at the idiots before him.

"We all have priorities, and yours should be getting out!"

"What do you think we've been doing?!" Error felt his whole body tense as he scowled.

"We've been trying..." Ink started to explain before drifting off as he did.

"Oh yeah..." Labby laughed nervously, one hand on his hip as the other rubbed the back of his neck. "That might be my fault, the Labyrinth picks up on my mood. Guess I was getting a little too annoyed with you." He gestures to Error with another nervous laugh. "Oops!"

"I hate you." Error narrowed his sockets as he glared at the Keeper of his current prison. Ink couldn't help but laugh despite knowing he should be the one upset.

"I have to give you two props for your determination, I'd have passed out long ago! In fact, I did. Maybe that's just a me problem." Labby shrugged.

"That's a typical thing for a Sans. Now that you're here though, can we sit and talk?" There were just so many questions running through the artist's mind, and it was hard to remember he had something to be worried about.

"Oh, sure!"

"I just stood up!" Error raised a hand in protest, his real frustration coming from his previous concern. "What the void happened to being concerned about time?" He scoffed over at the idiot he'd known for too long.

"Well, yeah..." _Don't be suspicious. It's not suspicious! Labby has just confessed to having influence over this place, sitting and talking- getting answers about this place- is totally worth it because getting in good with the keeper will help them get out? Maybe? Yeah, that sounds believable_. "But answers could really help us get out. And the Labyrinth will see we are taking this seriously!" _Was that what I thought? Eh, sounds good._

"Argh..." The destroyer had to rub his closed sockets. How that worked was just the science of the Undertale fandom’s idea of skeleton biology and anatomy. "Fine. But then I need a nap. Some of us need sleep to think." Sleep wasn't exactly a necessity to a glitch like it was to your run-of-the-mill monster, but he felt like he'd been walking for over a day, maybe even two. Error was sure he's had battles longer, but it was still a lot and it was giving him a headache. That also shouldn't be possible.

Labby and Ink sat down cross-legged across from each other, while Error flopped himself back on the ground like he was before. It was going to be hard to stay awake with the other two yammering on, but Ink's memory was worse than his. If anything of worth was said, they both needed to hear it if they wanted to get out of here.

"Okay, so why the hat?"

"Is that your idea of helpful questions?" _Of course that was the Squid brain’s first question._

"It is very important."

_Right._

"I've always had it, so I just feel weird without it." Labby happily explained.

"How does your jacket do that wave thing?"

"No idea! It's weird right?" The odd Keeper seemed to get more excited with each question.

"Do you have a brother?"

"Yes!"

"Oh! Is it Papyrus?"

"How'd you know his name?" The genuine shock was a bit confusing to the guardian and the destroyer. If this place really had existed so long, and many others had come through here, how come this ‘Sans’ did not seem to...

"That's Sans's brother?" Ink didn't mean for it to come off as a question.

"Am I supposed to know who Sans is?"

"Oh." Then again, there were a good handful of AU's that knew very little if not nothing of the original Undertale. Dreamtale, for instance. "Um... I guess that doesn't really matter..." There was no need to explain that if he didn't have to. Maybe another time if Labby asked.

"Can we meet your brother?"

"You wanna? He'd love to, I'm sure! One sec!" The excitable Keeper spoke so quickly as he stood up and his hologram vanished once again.

"Ink..." Error growled under his breath.

"We gotta get on his good side, Error! You're the one annoying him to the point the Labyrinth is toying with us." Ink argued this point in the hope that it'd buy him some more fun learning of this world without a fight or argument. This only seemed to gain him a long sigh from the destroyer and then silence that he took as a go-ahead that he would milk for every detail with.

"Here!" Labby exclaimed as his hologram reappeared and he flopped back down on the ground with a book. "This is Papyrus!" He presented a book with some kind of rock in the center of its cover, two leather straps like locks in slots on the cover to hold its thick pages closed-in, it seemed the whole of the cover for the book was a leather-like material. Nothing about it exactly said 'Papyrus' though, apart from...

"Well, it does technically have papyrus." Error chuckled looking up at the book from his position on the floor, certain this would disappoint the artist.

"It's a book." The guardian tilted his head slightly as he continued to examine the hologram.

"Correction; **He** is a book. Not an it. He's my brother."

"Hey buddy, any chance you've just lost your mind somewhere in this place?" The destroyer teased, earning him a glare with those swirling eyelights and a smirk from the one he was teasing.

"Hard to lose something if you never had it." Labby chuckled to himself before he sat the book down in his lap and pulled the leather straps from their slots on the cover so he could open the book. It seemed to contain many notes, but he opened it to a blank page and turned the blank pages to his guests. "Papyrus, meet Ink and Error, the current guests."

Just as after the Keeper spoke, the pages of the book seemed to write themselves. Ink's eyelights turned to two stars in his excitement.

Undyne is a fish-roach and Papyrus is a book!

[HELLO, INK AND ERROR! IT IS NOT OFTEN BROTHER LETS ME MEET GUESTS! MAYBE THAT IS BECAUSE MANY DO NOT ASK OR CARE, BUT HELLO ANYHOW! WOWIE, YOUR EYES CHANGE LIKE LABBY'S EYES DO, BUT DIFFERENT SHAPES! HOW FUN!! HAVE YOU GOTTEN TO DO A PUZZLE YET? THE LABYRINTH OFFERS MANY FUN PUZZLES TO DO!!]

It was like watching someone type on paper, a fast typer, that is. Ink could almost hear the voice of a classic Papyrus saying this to him, but instead he had to read it. Error on the other hand, could barely tell what was going on. Not only did he not have his glasses, but this angle only allowed him to tell that something was appearing on the paper.

"What is it?"

"The book-Papyrus- it-he's writing to us like he'd talk! It definitely is a Papyrus. The Labyrinth has puzzles?" Ink asked.

"Of course, most people can't solve their disputes just by having to simply find an exit." Labby nodded after his explanation, like he had to confirm with himself.

"Argh! How did this place get worse?!" Error groaned.

[DO NOT WORRY! THEY WILL BE FUN AND YOU TWO WILL GET ALONG IN NO TIME, I AM SURE OF IT!]

"Is there anyone else around?" Ink continued his questioning.

"Nope. Just Paps, Undying, the Labyrinth and me."

"Huh... really?" Ink tried to recall AU's with just a handful of the characters.

"So you, a sentient book, a bug and some moving walls. No wonder you're crazy." Error averted his gaze from the book, irritated by the abomination and even more irritated that he couldn't see any of the code of this place without his powers. He was sure if he could it'd be a horrible mess. Nowhere near as clean as it looked in the empty hallways.

"Maybe you really do need a nap, you're a cranky guy, huh?" Labby shut the book and sighed.

"ExCUSE ME?!"

"Error..." Ink tensed, smiling but his eyes had a target and an 'x' as a warning.

"Your enemy isn't exactly good at the whole friendly thing, huh?" Labby chuckled as he held his brother to his chest.

"They don't call him 'the destroyer' for kicks." Ink chuckled nervously.

"Fair enough." He stood up. "Don't worry about your whole 'paint emotions' thing if you rest, the Labyrinth takes that kind of stuff into account too. It's gonna want you to be present for the puzzles, I'm sure, at least the first one." Labby turned around. "That's enough for now, I don't want to take anymore of your time. Rest. I'm sure when you wake up, you'll run into your first trial in no time!" The keeper cheered, turning back just a bit to wave to Ink before the hologram vanished.

"Well that's nice of it."

"I guess we learned one useful thing." And with a sigh, Error turned to his side away from Ink and curled up on the floor for his nap.

Ink laid down but his gaze just fell onto the destroyers back. His hand reached to fiddle with his vials as he did when he was trying to figure out how he felt about something and what colours to drink, but alas, there were no vials to fiddle with. The guardian’s hands rested just at the edge of his ribs above the drop into his nonexistent stomach. It was odd to stare at Error, even just his back, when there were no glitches about. He wanted to poke him. See how he'd react now. If he was still awake, surely he'd still squirm away and curse at the artist. It wouldn't hurt him, though. _Would that stay when we leave this place?_

The guardian was sure it wouldn't, but something in the stirring emptiness of his ribcage still dared to wish for a world Error wasn't always in pain in. A world where Ink could hug him and tease him, and it wouldn't hurt for the one he wanted too dearly to be his friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops now the written version is ahead of the comic.
> 
> Look, sometimes my brain just wants to write. It writes first. I still love the comic, that’s still going, but don’t be surprised if the comic gets behind or the writing has more juice. I’m more comfortable in my writing than in my comic writing/drawing skills.


	4. Weight of The Fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Labby has some questions of his own, Error and Ink now must encounter their first trial leading to more compromise than Error would like, and maybe their previous wandering was more than a pissy Labyrinth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A BIG THANKS TO MAXILSMASTER!! They've been helping me edit these chapters, even the previous ones and I'm happy to have the help for the many mistakes I make when writing ':D I can't thank them enough! I believe they write their own stuff on here as Maxils so check them out.

Ink only hoped he could fall asleep as quickly as Error had, but his wandering mind kept him awake until their mysterious tour guide returned, kneeling beside him.

"Hey," Labby spoke quietly to not alert the third member of the group, "now that you've had some rest, can I ask you something too?"

"Uh, sure?" The guardian felt oddly the same as he had earlier, no more emotionally drained but physically recharged. _Did I sleep?_

"Why do you act like you're trying to be that guy's friend?" The Keeper adjusted his sitting position to lay on his non-existent stomach, resting his head on his hands with his elbows on the ground. "I just don't get what you two came here to deal with... it's not like I get a report or anything. Figured it should be obvious, or you'd mention what you were fighting about, but you seem so weirdly calm around this guy, and he just seems like everything makes him mad."

"Oh." Ink couldn't help but chuckle at that. Labby had a point since there was no worry of Error destroying this place without his powers, which only left Ink with his curiosity for Error's character when it came to how he 'felt' about him. "Well, Error's devoted to destroying AU's and I protect and help creators make AU's. Not really any point to fist fighting here, though, especially when Error..." He poked around the notes on his scarf. "He's got this phobia where he doesn't like touching. Punches are included, I guess."

"Wow." Labby's arms flattened to the ground, his head with them and his hat falling over his sockets. "Geez, that's one heck of a conflict." Something about that statement felt like deja-vu, but he couldn't place when he'd said it before. He felt that it might have been more than once. "That explains a lot, though."

"I'm sure it does!" Ink turned on his side to see the other better. "So, you have to figure people out when they get here, too? Sounds like a fun job."

"Yeah, I guess. Maybe." Labby adjusted his hat a bit so he could see, letting out a nervous laugh at the other's statement.

"You guess? You get to meet so many different characters!"

"Well... yes, but..." The Keeper sighed, watching his finger sliding on the ground as he pretended to get distracted by the dust.

"Don't tell me you get bored!" Ink was louder than before, it earned him a groan from their sleeping companion, whom they both ignored.

"N-no, I just don't usually remember the other times very well. Once visitors leave, my memory of them becomes really foggy. I forget about them, and just remember the trials. I think I only remember a total of 3? No, 4 pairs?"

"Great," Error groaned, "you both have crap memories! Congrats. I'm trying to sleep, though, so can you maybe, oh, I don't know, shut the fuck up?!"

"You shouldn't feel tired anymore. You slept already for a while," Labby noted as Ink moved to sit up and look over at Error. There was a moment of silence that the destroyer wished would have lasted forever.

"Hey, yeah! I feel recharged and ready!" The guardian cheered, two different coloured star-shaped eyelights forming in his sockets as he threw his hands in the air, earning him what almost sounded like a snort from his new companion.

"Argh..." Error hid his face in his scarf, grumbling incoherently.

"You upset that nap-time is over? Or upset that you didn't get to see Ink burst into an energized mode." Not that Labby knew what to call it, but if he did, he would call it cute. He did not know much about these two, but they gave off such conflicting energies and tensions. Something in the back of his mind told him Error might enjoy the company he had more than he would dare admit. Ink just chuckled at the comment, remaining harder to read for the Keeper. No soul did make it more of a challenge. The soul was not all there was to someone, though, or else Ink could not exist.

"NO!" Error's voice cracked, but without his glitching, it just sounded rough with frustration and dipped in nerves. "I didn't even realize I'd fallen asleep. It was like I blinked and then you two were going off. This place gets shittier with every crappy new feature." He groaned again on the word 'feature'. It sounded too proper for an abomination, but he just couldn't find a better word fast enough right now.

"That's great though, now we can just get to the puzzle thing, right?" Ink spun his head to look at the keeper's swirling eyelights. Labby just looked over at the opposite wall that Ink was facing, so the guardian followed his line of sight to see another door appeared. "Error!" He cheered, hurrying to his feet and rushed over to open the new door in hopes for anything other than more maze. The destroyer got up slowly with a few grumbles and followed after the guardian, ignoring the keeper all together.

Ink stood a few feet into the room, tilting his head and examining the weird tall object in the center of the room. To no one's surprise, once Error entered the room the door shut behind him and disappeared along with any sign of Labby, leaving the two guests of the Labyrinth alone with what looked like one of those carnival weight games.

It stood just tall enough that both skeletons had to tilt their heads back to see the top. The most apparent features were the darker shade of purple bell at the top, markings along the side that were missing measurements and a matching big hammer presumably to whack a softer purple part of the machine at the bottom. There was nothing else in the room.

"A circus game?" Error crossed his arms and glared the thing up and down.

"I think you mean carnival actually- OH BUT! This could be fun!" Ink hurried to grab the hammer, being reminded by the handle and the item's weight of his missing partner Broomy. "We just gotta get that little ball thing to hit the bell."

"Pfft, isn't this supposed to be a challenge or something?" He scanned the room with squinted sockets.

"Hm, I think it's more about having us get along." Ink pulled the hammer up above his head and swung down hard. Despite his own incredible strength even the destroyer was aware, the little ball alone flew a bit over halfway up. "Huh... I think I heard once someone said these things were always 'rigged'." He offered the hammer to the other ignoring that Error flinched back when he noticed. "Your turn~!" If this was just gonna be a fun time where he got to play actual games with Error, Ink was more than for it.

"Tsk!" The dark boned skeleton quickly grabbed the hammer from the other, immediately feeling its weight and almost dropping the damn thing. _If the squid brain couldn't get that thing up, how the fuck does he expect me to?!_ He already knew what the result would be, but he was too stubborn to say no to even such a small competition. When Ink moved away, he lifted the hammer about his head and slammed down with everything he could muster. It barely made it halfway and he could hear the artist's stupid muffled laughing. "Fuck-SHUT UP!" He tried again anyway, but only got a lower result and scowled as he yelled the game.

"It's just a game Error!" The guardian laughed at his usually fearsome opponent experiencing such a silly amount of rage induced by what was essentially a toy.

"WELL IT'S FUCKING BROKEN!" Error could not just accept this machine shoving it in his face that Ink was stronger than him, at the least in regards to physical strength. If he had his strings, he'd show this thing what real strength was.

"Doubt that." The guardian's laughter calmed when an idea came to mind. "It's rigged!" Error wasn't listening, shouting out swears and swinging at the thing aimlessly. _Pfft, he's like an angry kitten throwing a tantrum._ "Error!" Still nothing. "Ruru~!"

"FUCK OFF!" Error's face glowed blue and he yelled at the artist. Ink had to duck to avoid the hammer's fury as it was thrown at him for using that nickname again. He just let out another chuckle.

"I think we have to hit it at the same time."

"There's only one hammer dumbass."

"I know."

"..."

"..."

"NOPE!" Error immediately took a bunch of steps back, pulled his scarf up to hide under it. "It's bad enough this place thinks it can 'make us get along' but it has another thing coming if it thinks it can get me to be that close to you voluntarily!" _FUCK NO I WOULD DIE-Again- Wait is this place just trying to... no ink doesn't have his vials, that wouldn't make sense..._

"Aw, come on Ruru~ No more glitches mean it won't hurt if I end up touching you. I really think we have to hit this thing together."

"Nope. Not doing it." He plopped himself on the ground once against a wall to feel more secure.

"It's not gonna kill you."

"Yes, it will."

"Error..." Ink rolled his eyes and laughed again, amazed how quickly the destroyer's mood changed.

He finds himself once again reaching for his vials, _admiration? Happiness? Curiosity? I think that'd be what I feel from this._ He sighed, staring at the top of the carnival game when his hand can't find his cherished vials and he's reminded of his impending emptiness.

A moment of quiet was rarely calming around the artist, so the grumpy skeleton looked up from his hiding to see that look on the other's face. An hourglass eyelight in the socket Error could see. A neutral expression that somehow called out in longing like it asked for flavour. The destroyer has never understood why the guardian so openingly allowed him to see so many sides of him. Perhaps it was because he didn't care who saw what of him, if all his emotions were fake. Still, something deeper down would always nag Error about how that wasn't what he should be paying attention. Emotions were not personality. A soul wasn't the only thing that made someone them. This look was not from paints but from something beyond that.

"We can't stay in here forever, though," Ink sighed, glaring back to the hammer on the ground a few feet from him opposite the direction of the destroyer. He picked it up, walked back over to the game and raised it back above his head to swing as hard as he could. Still it only went a bit above halfway up, so he lifted it to try again.

"Just..." At some point, Error had gotten up and walked over to the artist without him noticing, a serious expression now on his face. Ink, thinking back to that admiration, knew he would feel more brightly and properly now if he could. "Don't try anything Squid," he declared, almost with a hiss.

Ink smiled and nodded, adjusting his own hands so they'd both have room. Funnily enough, as the shaking destroyer placed his own hands on the end of the hammer at an awkward distance to hold it, both skeletons knew this must be what had to be done since it was exactly enough space for both sets of hands. The artist chose to bite his tongue as not to spook away Error in a moment that seemed stressful for him. The dark boned skeleton had carefully moved closer to the other despite the screaming in his head since he needed to be able to actually put strength into this. He shut his eyes, deciding to trust Ink's aim and just focus on not freaking out so they can get this over with already.

Somehow, in a mutual understanding, and in an oddly comfortable silence, the two lifted the hammer and swung down hard. The bell sang as the little ball flew up and whacked it. Another door appeared on the wall behind the object.

Error jumped back as soon as he could and shoved his hands in his pockets. Ink wasn't far behind on dropping the tool, but he hurried around to reach the door. As he reached for the handle he noticed something written on the door.

"Alone, a battle may be left impossible. Together opens the way to new victories," Ink read aloud.

"Uh...the fuck?" Error slowly walked over to the door, unaware of the writing and assuming the artist just randomly spouted that word garbage out.

"That's what the door says."

"Doors can't-oh, you mean there's writing." _Yeah, I can't fucking read that, what the fuck._

"I don't think I get it though, we're fighting each other, how is it expecting us to work together when our goals are opposite?" Ink brought a hand to his chin, diving into thought.

"Maybe it's not literal. It's just something on a door." The destroyer shrugged, reaching for the doorknob quickly, hyperaware of how close he had to be again to do this, but he had to get them out of this stupid room. He felt like his non-existent stomach flipped when Ink grabbed his hand on the doorknob and opened it with him. Error pulled away, jumping back and hissing at Ink for thinking that was okay. "WHAT THE FUCK?!"

"We were still in the room. I'm pretty sure the door wouldn't open unless we both opened it to-"

"Then SAY SOMETHING instead of just doing!"

"Seemed easier than another argument." The guardian chuckled, holding one hand in the other as he walked out the door. "Oh hey, food!"

"Food?" _Okay, Ink's stupidity aside, is there actually food over there?_ Error cautiously followed far behind the other into the next place, which just seemed to return them to the maze, but there was indeed a long table against the wall filled with a decent variety of food, mostly junk food. Most importantly, a good section of chocolate the destroyer of course rushed over to and immediately began eating up a bar of the sugary snack. Ink just chuckled, reaching for a bar of his own only to be met with a death glare.

"Aw, come on, I want chocolate sometimes too, yanno." The guardian grabbed a bar anyway, quickly of course before moving to a safe distance. "You can have the rest of the chocolate bars." Ink wasn't the biggest fan of chocolate but he still wanted some now and then. At least now Error couldn't use his strings to take this one back. The food was obviously to be shared, not that they needed it for anything. They hadn't lost any health or used any magic. It did taste good, though.

 _Perhaps this was a bit like an apology for having made us waste so much time wandering earlier or a reward for working together!_ Ink noted mentally, hoping to remember to ask Labby if this was him or the Labyrinth. _How alive could this place really be? Normally I can kind of sense that stuff, but not even that power seems to be working, really._

The guardian looked over at his enemy and watched those fascinating tongues just rip apart pieces of the bar even with the wrapper still on. There was no way that tasted good. _What does he even get from eating the wrapper?_

Error never did stop amazing Ink with all his oddities.


	5. Keeper’s Dwelling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But what has Labby been up too while the visitors figure out their first challenge?

While the two guests figured out the first challenge, Labby’s hologram sat at the other side of the wall, waiting. He seemed to be sitting in the middle of the long hallway, staring up at the door that was not yet visible for the skeletons in search of it.

A sound from behind the keeper startled him, causing him to glance back at the opposite wall. The Labyrinth released a long table attached to the wall, only two legs on the side not against the wall holding it up. An arrangement of snacks were magically zapped into existence, appearing on the table from what seemed like thin air, not that the monster watching was all that surprised.

His interest was only piqued once he stood up and had a better view of the food offered. Despite somehow knowing it was all food, he realized he had no idea what any of this tasted like, or at least he didn’t remember. He reached for one of the treats, only for his fingers to pass right through them.

“Oh right.” He chuckled to himself, pulling his hand back against his chest like he was embarrassed to have forgotten. With a sigh, he turned back to face the door. “That’ll be a nice surprise.”

Of course, the keeper could only assume it was a nice thing to do, as it was equally possible, for all he knew, that everything on the table was awful. Another small beep from behind him drew his gaze back to the table where a small screen appeared above it on the wall that read ‘return’ before disappearing. The tall skeleton tilted his head slightly for a moment as he wondered what the Labyrinth meant before he straightened his posture with a small jump and smiled excitedly, disappearing from the hallway himself.

Back in the cozy little living area Labby lived in, he stood by the fireplace on a large carpet where a small device on the shelving of the fireplace stopped scanning him, which seemed to return the light to his eye-sockets. He turned to see a variety of snacks sitting on his small dining table just for him. He hurried over to plop down on the chair and dig through the junk food. The keeper thanked the ceiling before opening up a wrapper to some kind of white squishy substance.

When he bit the odd treat, it took a moment for him to understand it better, until a word popped into his mind. _Marshmallow._ Where the name came from, he wasn’t entirely certain, just like everything else he knew.

 _I wonder if I’ve eaten this before._ Labby leaned back in his chair, enjoying the sweet flavour of the sticky food. _Maybe I’ve eaten all of these foods before._ He looked over the pile on his table, then over at the armchair by the fireplace, or more specifically, at the book he kept sitting on it. _I could always ask- no…_ The keeper sighed.

It might have been as simple as asking Paps, but something ached in the back of his mind at the idea of bothering his brother with questions. How many times would Paps have had to answer the same question over and over again for his poor skeleton brother with a non-existent memory? It sounded as unfair as not remembering in the first place.

In other ways, Labby found that his memory was a blessing, though. Most people only got to try something the first time once, or meet someone for the first time once, or learn something once, while he got to enjoy endless firsts.

“Thanks again, Labyrinth.” He smiled softly, looking about the room.

_I wish you’d talk to me. I’m sure you could if you wanted to. You have so many tools, too. You’ve given me countless books and hints and so much more. I wish I could do more for you. I wish I could understand you._

Another kind of ache grew in his chest, painfully familiar. It came whenever he grew curious about something other than the visitors. It was a kind of pain that weighed his bones down like a punishment for his wandering mind. Even questioning the very feeling caused more aching.

Labby shook his head desperately as if that would toss the curiosity out. A long sigh later, he dug through the snacks, opening a bunch and shoving them into his mouth. With each new flavour hitting him, he gained a small distraction, until he ate something very sour and jumped up.

“Mah!” He shook his head and hands shutting his sockets, however that works in this universe.

_What was_ **_that_ ** _?!_

The keeper stood by the table with a blank expression as he processed what just happened before he burst into laughter.

“What a system shock! Oh, I hope that grumpy one eats whatever that was!” He adjusted his hat and then began scooping up wrappers. The floor opened up, and he tossed them in. The floor closed after the last wrapper was thrown in. The monster made his way to the armchair to pick up his brother, opening the book up. “I’d let you try some if your pages wouldn’t get all stuck together.”

[THAT IS NOT VERY FUNNY, BROTHER!]

“Who said I was joking?” Labby smirked down at the book.

[I CANNOT EAT. YOU KNOW THIS! ENJOY THEM FOR ME.]

“An equally good plan.”

[A MUCH BETTER PLAN! I ONLY COME UP WITH THE BEST PLANS.]

“Yeah, yeah, of course.”

[WAS THAT SARCASM? ARE YOU BEING SARCASTIC WITH ME? BROTHER!]

“Hmmm…” After a moment of pretending to think, Labby simply stuck his tongue out at his brother before chuckling softly and walking them back to the table of sweets. He placed his brother down next to the pile and sat down.

[DO NOT BE RUDE WITH ME! NO ONE LIKES BEING STICKY.]

“Statistically speaking, there is probably at least _someone_ that does.” He shrugged, taking another piece. “I think I can almost hear you sighing.”

[I’M NOT SPEAKING TO YOU.]

“I know that. Hence why I feel crazy talking to you.”

[...YOU ARE SOMETHING ELSE! I BLAME THE SUGAR, YOU ARE NOT ALWAYS SO… SO….]

“Annoying? Obnoxious? Insufferable?” Labby bit into a chocolate bar but then noticed his brother wasn’t responding. He’d finished the candy before he spoke again. “I was just teasing ya, I didn’t mean to upset you Paps…”

[I KNOW.]

“It wasn’t that mean, was it?”

[NO…]

“What’s up, Paps?”

[NOTHING. JUST ENJOY THE SWEETS, LABBY.]

Maybe it was just because he could not remember a time when Papyrus referred to him as Labby and not brother, but it unsettled him the way that was written. He didn’t think suggesting he’d stick candy in Paps would have been that big of an upset.

The only reasonable conclusion was that it was something else he had missed.

“Has this happened before?” It pained him to ask, but if it was for Papyrus’s sake, he would bring up any topic.

[WELL… NOT EXACTLY… LABBY?]

“Yeah Paps?”

[HOW IS IT THAT SOME THINGS YOU FORGET SO EASILY AND OTHER THINGS YOU REMEMBER FOREVER?]

“There are things I remember?” He tried to laugh a bit in his statement to break the tension.

[YOU REMEMBER YOUR NAME, MY NAME, CALLING ME BROTHER, THE LABYRINTH, YOUR TEA… YOU SEEM TO REMEMBER MANY POSITIVE MOMENTS AS WELL!]

“Sounds like my memory is a blessing then, I’m remembering all the important stuff, that’s all I gotta know.”

[NOT EVERYTHING IMPORTANT IS POSITIVE.]

“... Is there something you wish I’d remember?”

[I CONSIDERED MAKING A LIST ONCE, BUT… IT DOES NO GOOD.]

“I’m sorry.” Labby sank in his seat, fiddling with the top button on his jacket. “I wish I didn’t cause ya so much trouble, you do so much to make sure I don’t do anything stupid or feel lonely. I don’t mean to upset you.”

[I KNOW… I KNOW… MAAZ] The writing stopped and erased the odd word ‘maaz’ before continuing. [I AM NOT UPSET. I AM SAD FOR YOU, BROTHER. SO MUCH OF YOUR LIFE, YOU LOSE, AND YOU DON’T EVEN SEEM TO HAVE THE CHANCE TO WONDER ABOUT IT. TO WONDER ABOUT ANYTHING. DO YOU EVER WONDER HOW THOSE YOU HELP ARE DOING NOW?]

“I check in on them.”

[NO! I MEAN OUTSIDE! OUTSIDE OF THE LABYRINTH]

 _Outside of the Labyrinth? Can I even-_ Labby raised a hand to his head as an ache grew in the front of his skull. “That’s not… I need to be here.” He sat up straight and nodded, feeling better after saying that. “That’s all. We’re giving these souls a chance to fix things in the best possible environment for them. If they go out there and mess it up after, well maybe we bring them back or it’s their loss.”

[WHAT ABOUT… FOR YOURSELF?]

“What about me?”

[HAVE YOU NEVER WANTED TO SEE WHAT'S OUT THERE?]

“Apparently a lot of arguing and fighting. Why would I want to run into a world or universe or whatever where I’d just be in the middle of a battle zone?”

[THERE COULD BE WONDERFUL THINGS OUT THERE TOO! I’M CERTAIN OF IT! THINGS YOU’VE READ TO ME ABOUT! LIKE SNOW! OR HEROES! OR CASTLES! OR CARS!! OH, IT’D BE SO COOL TO SEE A REAL CAR GOING DOWN A BIG STREET!]

“Sounds more like you just want to-“

[SHHHHUUUSSSSHHHH!]

“You’re really trying to interrupt me huh? Why the shush?” He couldn’t help but laugh a bit at his brother.

[I WOULD RATHER THE LABYRINTH NOT KNOW THIS… PERHAPS I HAVE WISHED FOR A VACATION WITH MY DEAR BROTHER, IF ONLY HE COULD REMEMBER IT TOO! EVEN THE WEIRD OR BAD BITS WHICH ARE HALF THE FUN OF AN ADVENTURE!]

“Was that really all this was about Paps?”

[ADVENTURES SOUND FUN, DON’T THEY?!]

“I don’t really think we should. I don’t think we can.”

[AH… THAT IS FINE, THEN… I SUPPOSE THE STORIES WILL HAVE TO DO THEN. I DO HAVE AN OUTSTANDING IMAGINATION!]

“Storytime then?”

[YES PLEASE!!]

The Keeper kept a small smile on his face while he reached for another book from the walls of bookshelves he had. Opening the smaller book, he read aloud to his brother until the end of the little story. When the story had finished, and Paps went quiet, Labby shut the book he was reading as well as his brother. His expression fell, bowing his head to gaze at the floor.

He could tell that this had not been the first time Papyrus had expressed a desire to see outside of the walls of the Labyrinth. The idea terrified Labby more than anything. Of course, he wished to make his brother happy, the book had been nothing but kind and caring for him for as long as he can remember. All the more reason he didn’t want to leave. The Labyrinth was safe, and everything about leaving screaming in his marrow ‘danger’. Especially for Papyrus, who couldn’t even make a sound, let alone defend himself.

Then, there was the aching. Like his very being already knew what would happen if he left the safety of the Labyrinth. _Had it happened before?_ He had to wonder. _It’s not like I’d remember, but wouldn’t Paps know then? Unless it was before him? It’s not like I’d remember if I existed before he did. The Labyrinth would know._ He gazed over at the fireplace, always crackling a cozy flame, he rubbed at the pain in his chest.

 _No._ Labby stood up to put the book away, returned to the table for his brother and carefully returned him to his spot in the armchair. _Everything we need is here. That’s all I need to know._ He flopped onto the couch across from the fire. _How many times have we had that discussion?_ He sank on the couch with a groan. _How many times have I come to the same conclusion?_ The Keeper gazed into the flickering flame as he laid on his side.

_How many more times will we repeat this?_

The question reminded him of something his current visitors have said about him being ‘a Sans’ like there were countless versions of this ‘Sans’ being. It made him think about some of the books he’d read, about multiple realities. ‘AU’ was another term they used. _Alternate Universe. How much of that results in lots of repetition? What else did they say about that? Shoot, did I already forget, or did they just not talk about it much?_

There was a simple solution, though.

Labby turned on the machine above the fireplace, stood back for it to scan him and his eye-lights went out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took me longer than it was supposed to-OOF! Sorry you guys! But thank you so much to Maxils again for speedy editing! 
> 
> Happy (early) Halloween y’all :D

**Author's Note:**

> UnderMaze is originally a comic I started but decided to do a written version as well since I love this story and so people may prefer reading it like this than in my crappy handwriting. 
> 
> The comic can be found on Tumblr or Instagram, just search for the UnderMaze blog/account. I also post it on my Twitter but that's messier.


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